Tire rack



E. K. LAWRENCE,

ma RACK. APPLICATION FILEDJUNE3|1920.

A? 3?@0 Patented Jan. 3l, i922 2 SHEETS-SHEET .1.

F. K. LAWRENCE.

TIRE HACK.

APPLICATION FiLED JUNE 3,1020.

m4959375 Patented Jan. 315 E922. t,

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

FFQE.

:FREDERICK r1. Lawnnnon, or omesso, ILLINOIS. i

TRE RACK.

rios, frs.

vApplication led Iune 3,

To ZZ whom t may collec/Mt:

Be it known that l, FREDERICK K. LAW- RENCE, a citizen of the llnited States, residingY at Chicago, in the county ot' Cook and State oli' Illinois, have invented a certain new and usetul lmprovement in Tire Racks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to tire racks, especially for the spare rims and tires ot motor vehicles, and in certain respects is analogous tothe type of rack shown in my copending application filed on the 26th day of May, 1920, Seria-l No. 3%,459 (Case 9). The general purpose of the device is to provide means by which a spare rim and tire may be. raised 'from the ground up into traveling position on `the rack or vice versa with the expenditure ol but slight eliort by'the operator. Another objeht is to provide means whereby the tire may be let down entirely onto the ground and be thereafter .completely disengaged, thus avoiding the need of lifting the tire or otherwise manil'mlating it to free it trom the rack. Another object is to provide means 'whereby the tire may be securely locked in place when in traveling' position.

I accomplish my objects by the mecha nism illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which- Figure l is an assembly view trom the side of the vehicle showing the rack and tire in traveling position. The tire and rim are shown in ventical axial section.

Figure :2 is similar to Figure l except that the partsare viewed in rear elevation.

Figure Il is a perspective view ol the rack .showingA it mounted upon one of the stationary Vlrame members oi the vehicle.

Figure l is a lt'iagnieiitary sectional view showing the .manner ot' niolinting;` the upper rim seat.

Figure 5 is a plan view ot the parts Ashown in Figure 3 with the addition ot' a rim and tire in place` the latter being shown in horiontal axial section.

Like. numerals denote like parts through out the several views.

ln the forni selected to illustrate the invention. the device hasl a main bracket l adapted to hc riveted or otherwise secured to a cross member 2 attached to the chassis ot the vehicle. This bracket is vertically apertured. to accommodate two upright movable members. one ol' which constitutes a guide .rod -l and the other a screw b. The guide Specification of Letters Patent. Pil'lelll'ie Jn. 31, 1922.

i920. serial No assisi.

rod is slidable in the bracket while the screw works in a thread within the bracket. At its lower end, beneath the bracket, the screw has a crank handle 8 approximately on the level with it but slightly below an eye 10 formed at the lower end of the guide rod 4. The eye is tor locking purposes, being adaptedto receive the bow 1l ot' a padlock l2 vwhich may also pass around the crank handle to prevent rotation of the screw 6, as best shown in Figure 3. For the sake of strength-and security it is desirable that the lower end of the rod and screw be linkedtogether by a link 14 which somewhat loosely encircles them both. At the upper end of the rod and screw is a rim seat 16 adapted, to engage the tire rim. This is carried by a block 18 which is vertically apertured at two points to receive the reduced upper ends 19, 20 of the rod 4 and screw 6 respectively, as best shown` in Figure 4. The result of this construction is that the screw may rotate without rotating the block, but its rotation will raise and lower the block and this in turn will cause the guide rod to slide within the bracket l and prevent the block 'from rotating about the screw as an axis. The block held seated upon the parts 4 and G by nuts 22 screwing onto the upper ends thereof.

The rack also has two stationary `rim seats E26 which, according 'to this design,

are located symmetrically on opposite sides of the center ot' the device and near -the bottom thereof. They face downward and outward and are adapted to overlie and engage the lower portion ot the wheel rim. The stationary rim seats are supported in any suitable manner, in the present case being carried by a bowed angle iron 28 fastened to the back of the member 2 and at their inner ends engagingv and being` fastened to the sides of the bracket 10 'for bracing the latter.

ln practice, when the operator is ready to raise a rim and tire to traveling position he rolls them along the ground to the position indicated by dotted lines, Figure 2. He also backs otl' the screw (5 until the rim seat 1Gy is so low that it may freely passl under the rim. tire to a point above seat 16 and then rotates the crank handle 8 in either direction 'to raise the seat 16 with the suspended rimand tire upon it. This action is continuedY un- He then swings the upper side of the til the movable seat 16 draws the rim into rm and close engagement with the stationary seats Q6. He Jthen brings the crank handle 8 angularly to a position adjacent to the eye 10 -in the guide rod after which he applies the padlock and the parts become securely locked in place.

On account of the screw motion, very little physical exertion is required oiI the operator in raising the tire and still less in lowering it. Furthermore, by making the screw and guide rod long enough the device may be -made to accommodate a rim or' Widely different diameters. ln other words, without changing the size or design of the rack it becomes applicable to different sizes of rims. lt will be seen that in lowering the tire the latter immediately disengages the stationary seats 26. It is thereafter' supported upon the .movable seat alone'. This latter may then be lowered, first, until the tire is supported entirely on the ground, and then still Jfurther until the movable seat entirely disengages and clears the tire and rim, thus permitting the operator to simply roll the tire away -without having to litt or drag it in any way to free it from the rack. rlhis is ot' great ad vantage for tires and rims are usually heavy and trequently muddy or dusty, thus making it both inconvenient and unpleasant to handle them. v

lt will be noted that l have positioned the guide rod 4 farthest to the rear. lt thus acts as a guard for the threaded screw 6, protecting the latter from collision with objects approaching from the rear ot' the vehicle.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A tire rack for motor vehicles having` a stationary seat adapted to engage the tire, a movable seat adapted to support the tire and to bring it into engagement with the Stationary seat to hold the tire in place, said movableseat being also adapted to lower the tire to the ground, and ascrew carried by the vehicle and adapted to operate the movable seat. y y

2. A tire rack having a stationary seat for the tire, a movable seat for moving the tire into and out of engagement with the stationary seat` a screw for actuating the movable seat, and a stationary threaded member in Which the screw works` the screw being adapted to lower the movable seat out olt engagement with the tire when the latter rests upon the ground.

3. A tire rack and carrier adapted to be attached to a motor vehicle and to carry the tire in a substantially vertical plane, 'the device having a stationary seat adapted to engage the tire, and a vertically movable seat adapted to support the tire and adapted to move the tire vertically in its own plane into and out of engagement with the Stationary scat.

4. A tire rac-k having a stationary seat for the tire, a movable seatfor moving the tire into and out of engagement with the stationary seat, a screw for actuating the Inovable seat, a stationary threaded member in which the screw works, a crank handle on the screw for rotating it, and means for locking thecrank handle against angular movement, the screw being adapted to de scend to a point at which the tire will rest upon the ground.

.il tire rack having a pair of stationary tire seats facing downward and outward, a stationary bracket, an upright screw working in said bracket, a movable seat s'yviveled to the upper end of the screw for ocking the tire in engagement with the stationary seats, and means for rotating the screw, the

screw being adapted to descend suiliciently to let the tire down onto the ground and thereafter descend still further and lower the movable seat out of engagement with the tire.

(3. A tire rack for motor vehicles, having a stationary seat for the tire, a movable seat .for moving the tire into and out of engagement with the stationary' seat, and a screw adapted to lower the movable seat suiliciently to bring the tire into contact with the ground.

7. A tire rack and carrier for motor vehicles having a movable seat for suspending the tire, a stationary seat adapted t0 cooperate with the movable seat to hold the tire in place, and a screw carried by the vehicle and adapted to raise and lower the movable seat vertically, `whereby the tire will always move in its own plane, said screw being adapted to lower the movable seat to a point where the tire will rest directly upon the ground.

8. A tire rack and carrier adapted to be stationary seat for engaging the tire, a fstationary bracket. a screw working in saidy as an axis, and means for guiding said rod.l

9. tire rack for motor vehicles having ay stationary seat for the tire, a ymovable seat Jfor moving the tire into and out ol engagement with the stationary seat, a screw and a stationary member secured to the vehicle in which the screw works. the screw being adapted to descend sullicieutly to bring the tire into contact with the ground and to thereafter descend sulliciently to entirely disengage the tire.

ll). ln combination with a motor vehicle. a tire supporting means carried thereby, said y3.10 attached to a motor vehicle and having a -toengage the interior of the vupper portion'thereof for supporting ft; Said tire supporting means includingv sbltionaly seats adapted to engage' the vinterior of the rim and-a vertically movablefseet adeptd at t e movable seat being adapted' to be raised sufficiently to bring the rim into engagementpwith the stationary seats and being ladapted to descend to an elevation less than the elevation of the interior of the rim at the upper .portion 'whenthe tirev is resting uponl the groundf l 11. A tire rack and carrier adapted tobe fastened to a motor vehiele,'the device having a stationary lower tire seat', a stationary brackenan upright sdvv Working in said bracket, a movable seat swlveled to the u'pper .end of the screw, a guide rod parallel and adjacent to .the screw and fastened at its upper end to the movable seat, and means Jfor guiding said guide rod the guide rod I being located to the rear o the screw for .protecting the latter against collision from .the rear of the vehicle.

12. A tire rack and carrler adapted to be fastened to a motor vehicle and having a vertically movable seat adapted to engage and interlock with the inside of the rim of the tire, a stationary lower seat adapted to makeinterlocking engagement with the rim of the tire when the two are'in cooperative engagement, and means for raising and 'lowering the movable seat in a Vertical lane to lift the tire from the ground and to ring the rim thereof into interlocked engagement with the stationary seat.

' In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name.y

FREDERICK K. LAWRENCE. 

